This invention relates to an apparatus for mending a puncture in a tubeless tire.
The known method for mending a puncture in a tubeless tire has been to apply a vulcanized adhesive or paste to the puncture hole after enlarging and molding the hole with a reamer-like cutter. A spreader with a guide shaft fitted thereinto is then inserted into the puncture hole, the guide shaft alone being drawn out, and a plug is inserted into the spreader. The spreader together with the metal tube of the plug are then drawn out, the tire is inflated, and thereafter the portion of the plug that is protruding from the tire is cut off thereby completing the repair.
The plug for use in the known method has a metal tube on the outside thereof, and one end of the plug body consists of rubber shaped in the form of an umbrella. The umbrella-formed portion alone protrudes from the metal tube, and the plug is inserted into the puncture hole with such umbrella-formed portion as the forward extremity, as a result of which the puncture hole is enlarged more than necessary. Moreover, since the plug itself slides while being compressed by the tension of the tire when the metal tube guide is drawn out in the final process, the layer of the unvulcanized rubber is not perfectly brought into contact with the exterior periphery of the puncture.
When a puncture is repaired making use of the aforementioned umbrella-formed plug, the plug may be prevented from being dislocated outwardly from the tire during driving at a high speed. However, this method has the defect that the umbrella-formed plug is dislocated to the inside of the tire when the interior pressure thereof is reduced by an excessive occurrence of a standing wave phenomenon in addition to absence of progress of the vulcanization of the plug, the puncture hole thus subsequently being enlarged due to separation of the plug from the tire.